An Effort to Bury the NRC Fukushima Task Force Recommendations

The
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Near-Term Task Force on the Fukushima
nuclear disaster presented its recommendations for improving safety at US reactors to the NRC Commissioners on July 19. While the report’s recommendations are not perfect, they are a
start for improving safety in the event of low probability, high consequence
events, such as earthquakes and flooding. Of course, the proof will be in the
pudding: how these recommendations are carried out will determine whether real
safety improvements are made.

But
the question still remains whether
they will be carried out. The nuclear industry made it clear that they don’t
want any changes, claiming that it is too early to draw conclusions from the
Fukushima disaster. This argument is
gobbledygook: there are strikingly clear lessons from Fukushima that the NRC
must act on now. For example, Fukushima
made it crystal clear that plans must to be in place to cool a reactor in the
event of the loss of offsite and onsite
power. And how can it be rash to
“reevaluate and upgrade as necessary” earthquake and flooding protection at
reactors?

As
a testament to NRC’s coziness to its “regulated” industry – recently well-documented by the Associated Press – the day after the Task Force presentation, Commissioners Svinicki and Magwood voted to
punt these recommendations to NRC staff for further review – essentially
burying them in bureaucracy. It is alarming that at least two of the NRC Commissioners
are resisting change to the status quo.
These recommendations are not the end-all, be-all of what needs to be done to
improve safety at operating US reactors. Important measures that must be taken,
such as moving spent fuel out of packed fuel pools, are conspicuously missing. Moreover, the report recommends continuing to
relicense old reactors, as well as certifying new reactors designs and
licensing their construction and operation, even before the Task Force recommendations
are implemented. This is does not just
fail the common sense test – it is downright dangerous. (Remarkably, since the Fukushima disaster
started on March 11, NRC has plowed ahead with relicensing nine reactors,
some of which are a similar design as the Fukushima reactors.)

While
the recommendations presented by the Fukushima Task Force are not exhaustive, the
NRC must vote to move forward on them. After
these recommendations are adopted, there will be opportunities for stakeholders
– including the public, NRC Staff, and the nuclear industry – to weigh in as
they are fleshed out. The NRC must set
deadlines for each recommendation and follow-through as quickly as possible –
anything less would be abdicating its job of protecting public health and
safety.

Comments

Lori said ..

"...since the Fukushima disaster started on March 11, NRC has plowed ahead with relicensing nine reactors..."
This makes it sound as if they have already been relicensed, but looking at the NRC page, it looks like they have so far only applied for relicensing. Am I interpreting this information correctly, or is the relicensing process already completed? I would like to know because I would like to write to PA's governor in opposition to Limerick's renewal if the process has not yet been completed.